It had also been a relief, but Tyler didn’t intend to share that particular snippet. He’d get to the dark details of his past with Susan, once they knew each other better.
The drinks arrived, interrupting his need to reply straightaway. He gripped his beer bottle, tension sliding across him to settle in his shoulders. When the waitress departed he said, “Yes, she died way too young. My in-laws were great and they continue to support me. I’m lucky.”
“Do they know you’ve come up here to meet a woman?” Caleb asked.
“Yes.”
“Do they know her identity?” Maggie asked, shooting to the heart of the line of questioning.
“No. I told them I met her on the internet.”
“They were okay with that?” Ryan asked. “My parents would have asked a hundred questions, given me a hundred lectures.”
Tyler smiled. “Oh, they asked nosy questions but I told them I didn’t intend to answer any until I knew if things were going to work out.”
“Do you do this sort of thing often?” Connor demanded.
Tyler met his gaze without flinching. “No, I haven’t dated anyone since my wife died.” He’d gone out to town socials and danced with women, but after his wife trampled his feelings, he’d needed time to heal plus he’d had responsibility for Katey. “My concern was for my daughter, not my love life.”
“Why Susan?” Maggie asked.
Tyler scowled. “Why not? She’s beautiful.”
The music changed to a vocal track and the lights dimmed—a signal of some sort because club patrons straightened to attention and the buzz of conversation died. Up on the stage, a spotlight appeared and Julia walked into it, stunning and attention grabbing in her blue gown.
“Good evening,” Julia said, a mike amplifying her voice. “Welcome to Maxwell’s, and thank you for coming out so early on a Friday night.”
Cheers rang out.
“We want Fantasy Girl,” a male voice shouted from the rear.
“Fantasy Girl!” others picked up the chant.
Julia smiled and gestured for silence. “We have a chorus of dancers first out, and Susan is one of the dancers. She’ll be doing a couple of dances, so stick around and enjoy the fun!” She gave a theatrical flourish with her right hand, the music shifted to sultry and flirty and the curtains opened with a swish. The spotlight on Julia faded and whoever was in charge of lighting started off a sequence of illumination that picked out a row of long legs. Fishnet stockings. Sexy.
Expectation pulsed like a live thing, bouncing from the men and women eying the stage. Tyler leaned forward, eager to see this side of Susan. The women wore identical dark wigs and slim black masks. Their lips were painted a sultry red, and they wore sexy maid costumes with panache.
He watched the sequence, mesmerized by the athleticism and the sensual nature of the tease. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but Susan was right to take issue with people calling her a stripper. This dance highlighted sensuality with the slow reveal of long limbs and bare shoulders. Sexy and breathtaking, the dance raced to an end almost too quickly. The music crashed to a climax. The women froze in position. Silence fell. Each of the women straightened, blew a cheeky kiss at the audience, then the curtains closed, breaking the audience’s spell. Applause and cheers rang out along with a few rude suggestions about maids.
“Is the routine new?” Caleb asked. “I don’t remember seeing it before.”
“We’ve been doing it for about a week,” Christina said.
Tyler lifted his beer and took a long sip to temper the heat roaring through his veins. The dance had been…intense. Definitely sexy. But which one was Susan? He had no idea.
The spotlight bloomed again and the crowd quieted. “Since you’re such a great audience, we’re going to change things up tonight,” Julia said. “In ten minutes, we’ll have a fan dance for you.”
“What about Fantasy Girl?” a man shouted from the rear.
A flurry of ribald comments shot at Julia like bullets from a paint gun, each more colorful than the last. Grinning, she raised her hand for silence. “You know this club is about whimsy and imagination. All our dancers fuel fantasy. Yes, Susan is dancing tonight, but I’m not about to point her out. That’s what we have brains for—to fantasize!”
The crowd stomped their feet and pumped their fists in the air. Tyler scanned nearby faces. The men lusted after the dancers and the women aspired to be the dancers.
“Does Julia dance too?” he asked.
Ryan gave a curt nod. “All the dancers wear masks, so most people never know their identities, but I know my wife’s body.”
“Maggie and I dance on occasion,” Christina said. “It’s a real rush. Susan is a natural though. She’s good—almost as talented as Julia.” She placed her hand over his and leaned closer. “You don’t need to feel jealous. Susan hasn’t dated anyone for ages. You’re the first man she’s brought to meet us. She’s not interested in anyone else.”
“Thanks,” Tyler murmured, her words settling the tension roiling in his gut.
The chatter at their table became general, ranging from the rugby game tomorrow to where they were going for dinner after Susan’s next dance to the management of Maxwell’s. Tyler listened with half an ear and nursed his beer. No way did he intend to drink past his quota. If things proceeded the way he wanted, he’d manage to talk Susan into returning to his hotel. He wanted to explore her—both mind and body—with an intensity he’d never experienced with another woman.
The lights shifted, softened, and the chatter died. This time Julia didn’t introduce the act, but remained behind the scenes.
The curtains glided open and Ryan let out a soft groan. “In a minute, mate, you’ll know exactly how I feel every time my wife dances.”
Two masked dancers—both redheads—stood in the middle of circles of rose light. Large pink feathers flickered enticingly in front of their bodies, revealing and concealing, never ceasing their graceful arcs. The dancers’ mirrored each other.
“Susan is on the right,” Christina whispered.
Immediately Tyler’s gaze settled on her, his emotions swinging wildly from conservative to radical. He couldn’t take his eyes off her yet part of him wanted to jump on stage and whisk her away. His eyes only.
As one, the dancers reached behind their backs. Two flamingo pink bra tops flew into the audience. Eager hands grasped the tops and cheers rang out from the victorious recipients.
On stage, long legs flashed and the next minute two pairs of neon pink panties flew in their direction. Ryan caught one pair and grinned while the other pair landed right in front of Tyler.
“You’d better grab those or Caleb will beat you to them,” Connor said with a knowing smirk.
Tyler reached for the pink panties, briefly wondered what to do with his prize. Finally, he stuffed them in his jacket pocket while he kept his gaze glued to Susan. Pressure grew in his chest—apprehension. He waited for the fans to go in the wrong direction, waited for the flash of a butt or bare breasts. Susan’s naked body.
“Don’t worry,” Christina whispered. “They’ve done this dance heaps of times. No one will get a peek.”
Tyler hoped she was right. He found himself mesmerized by the flirty movements, the arch of bodies and the sexy smiles beneath the black masks. The music crashed to a finale and the spotlights flicked out, leaving a black stage and silence. Then enthusiastic applause broke out and Tyler slumped back in his chair.
Both men and women gave an enthusiastic response to the dance. There were a few wolf whistles, more lewd comments.
“I bet those two women are horny after all that teasin’,” a man at a nearby table said in a loud voice.
Tyler tensed.
“I think I might head back to the dressing room and take on both of them. My big cock is more than capable of the job.”
Tyler half stood, but Ryan reached out to grasp his arm. “Don’t bother wasting your energy.”
Christina wrink
led her nose. “Yeah, guys who mouth off like that usually have dicks the size of walnuts.”
Tyler half spluttered at the insult and sank onto his chair. Ryan was right. Creating a scene wouldn’t solve a thing. “How do you cope with other men lusting after your wife?”
“She’s not interested in other men, and she comes home to me.” Ryan hesitated and seemed to consider his words carefully. “I do a lot of traveling with my job, so the trust needs to go both ways. Besides, Julia loves working at the club and enjoys dancing. No one recognizes the dancers when they’re dressed in their normal clothes. The costumes and masks do the job of concealing identities.”
Tyler gave a swift nod of acknowledgement and picked up his drink to swallow the last mouthful. Even though he hadn’t known Susan long, their exchange of emails had covered a broad gamut. She loved to dance, and trying to change that—take dancing away from her—simply because he couldn’t handle audience comments would shoot this budding relationship to the no-way-in-hell pile.
He needed to work past his possessiveness. Besides, he didn’t have the right to quash talent. It would be like someone telling him he could never paint again, could never pick up a pencil to sketch a portrait of his daughter.
“They were incredible,” he said. “Maxwell’s is a slick operation.”
“Thank you,” a soft voice said. “Susan is taking care of a last minute panic with the change. She won’t be long and then we can go.” Julia turned to Christina. “You have our number if you need us.”
“Here’s Susan now,” Christina said, making shooing motions with her hand. “We’ve got this. We can’t do much damage in one night. Go. Go.”
Susan stopped beside Tyler. “What did you think?”
“You were great. I’m going to frame that pair of pink panties.” He grinned at her, his protectiveness easing now that she stood at his side. He had more important things to worry about, such as his brother’s unpredictable antics. “How did you manage to land them in the right place?”
She grinned. “Julia and I have a lot of practice. Plus we have a private competition, an incentive. A poor throw means I have to buy a round of margaritas the next time we have a girl’s night out.”
Tyler grinned down at her and unable to resist, bent his head to snatch a quick kiss.
Maggie poked him in the ribs. “That’s enough of that. The pair of you can cuddle on the dance floor. Besides”—she lowered her voice—“someone will recognize Susan and wonder what’s going on with her kissing a man who isn’t Nolan.”
Fuck, she was right. Tyler drew back sharply. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Susan murmured.
“Would you and Susan like to ride with us?” Julia asked.
“That would be great,” Tyler said. “I didn’t bother with a rental car since I figured I wouldn’t get much use out of it this weekend. Where are we having dinner?”
“At the Grant Hotel.”
“That’s where I’m staying,” he said.
“How convenient,” Julia said, wriggling her eyebrows at Susan.
A hostess showed them to a private table at the rear of the restaurant. Tyler trailed Susan, noting both the stunning night panorama out the floor-to-ceiling glass windows and the way several diners recognized her. Maggie had been right to remind him of observers in public places. Public shenanigans might create an unfavorable backlash.
His mind circled back to his brother. Damn, he wished he knew why Nolan had suddenly stepped out of his good-boy good-son persona. It wasn’t his normal behavior.
“She’s a charming and sexy woman,” Nolan had told Hailee during an onscreen interview. Although they didn’t talk much these days, Tyler knew his brother. Something else ran beneath his glib public reasons.
Undercurrents.
Tyler pushed aside his unease to focus on the woman who’d brought him to Auckland. “What are your favorite foods? We haven’t covered food likes and dislikes yet.”
“I love roast beef with all the trimmings, but since I started dancing I’ve cut back on red meat. I eat mainly fish and lots of vegetables and fruit with an occasional foray into the naughty stuff.”
Tyler paused to accept the menu from the waitress. “No huge sweet tooth?”
“I have a fondness for anything lemon and chocolate. What about you?”
“I like cinnamon and spices,” he said and reached over to tug a lock of her glossy brown hair. “Your freckles remind me of cinnamon drops.”
“Cut out that flirting,” Connor said in a stern voice. “We don’t want to attract attention.”
“Hell no,” Ryan said with a quick glance at Julia. “That’s the last thing we want.”
“I guess I should behave,” Tyler said.
Susan winked, leaned closer. “We can play footsie under the table.”
Her casual manner quashed Tyler’s stirring apprehension, made him relax and enjoy the treat of adult company his own age.
The dinner was full of spirited conversation and laughter. Tyler liked Susan’s friends, but he craved alone time with his lady. He’d never talked to a woman before, not like he did with Susan. Their frequent emails seemed to have cut through the awkward getting-to-know-you conversations. Now Tyler was impatient to get to the physical stuff—if Susan agreed.
He caught her frequent glances, shared smiles and under the table they held hands for an all too brief moment.
“Hello.”
Tyler glanced up to see a young couple from a neighboring table. They looked straight at Susan.
“You look like the girl on the farmer reality show. Are you Susan?” the female of the couple asked.
“Yes, I am,” Susan said with a smile. “Are you enjoying the show?”
“It’s great. We hope Nolan chooses you,” the woman said. “Can we have your autograph?”
Tyler bit his tongue, bit back his protest, bit back his inner fears. Nolan bloody better not pick Susan again, not now that Tyler had met her in person.
“Sure.” Susan smiled again and accepted pen and paper from the woman. Tyler watched her scrawl a message and a signature before she handed back the autograph.
“Thanks!”
“Good luck,” the man said, and he ushered his lady back to their table.
“You’re famous,” Tyler said.
“I’ve had a few requests for autographs. A teller recognized me at the bank and a group of teenagers noticed me in the café. I get a lot of messages on the website. Some are creepy.”
“The price of fame,” Maggie said with a loud sigh.
A solo male guitarist started on another bracket of songs, the music soft and dreamy and perfect for lovers.
“The guy has a good technique,” Ryan said. “Julia, do you want to dance?”
“Do you play?” Tyler asked.
“A little,” Ryan said.
Susan laughed. “He’s actually being modest. He’s a pretty fair musician.”
Connor and Maggie joined Julia and Ryan on the dance floor, leaving Tyler alone with Susan.
“What would you like to do after dinner?” he asked.
Susan groped for his hand under the table and their fingers entwined. “I’d like to be alone with you.”
Tyler’s pulse jumped on seeing her expression. “In my room?”
“Yes.” She glanced across the room at her friends. “I’d better let Julia know I’m leaving. What room number are you?”
“I’ll wait for you.”
“No,” Susan said. “People keep looking in this direction. We’d better leave separately or else we’ll start a gossip blitz.”
“How about if I say goodnight to your friends first and pretend I’m leaving?” Susan was right to act with caution. Josie had mentioned the stories in the ladies’ magazines. If an enterprising reporter got hold of the fact Susan was dating someone other than Nolan, they’d shout the news across the media.
And his mother would create merry hell. She barely spoke to him as it was…
“Sure.” He pushed aside his past to concentrate on Susan. “Good plan. I’m in room 612. Will you stay the night?”
“Yes.” She didn’t hesitate.
“What about Nolan?”
Her nose crinkled in a cute manner. “Your brother and I are not a good match. He doesn’t approve of me, and I’m still trying to figure out why he picked me during the last round.”
“See you soon,” Tyler said, standing. Without a backward look, he strode between the tables, most of them still full despite the lateness of the hour. He tapped Ryan on the shoulder. “Sorry to interrupt. I’m off now. It was great to meet you all.”
“You’re still gonna play rugby, right?” Connor asked after he steered Maggie over to them.
“Sure,” Tyler said. “What time do you need me and where is the game?”
“Have you got a phone?” Connor asked. “I can text you the details. Is Susan not going to go with you?”
“We’re leaving separately,” Tyler said, after giving Connor his number.
“Good idea,” Ryan said, offering his hand.
Tyler left with a final wave and hoped like hell Susan wouldn’t keep him waiting too long.
Susan took her time, not wanting to make their planned meeting seem obvious to anyone taking notice.
“Why are you checking your watch every few seconds?” Maggie asked.
“You should have another glass of wine first,” Julia said. “You don’t want him to think you’re too eager.”
Susan tossed her head and shared around her scowl. “Easy for you to say. You have husbands. I have to rely on my battery operated boyfriend. The real thing would make a welcome change.”
“But that doesn’t mean you have to jump into bed with him,” Julia said.
“Stop.” Susan held up her hand. “We’ve been emailing back and forth for two weeks. I know more about him than I knew about any of my previous boyfriends. Connor checked him out. Everything he’s told me is the truth. I didn’t get any weird vibes tonight. Did you?” Her challenging gaze slid from face to face, measuring her friends’ reactions. “I want him. Don’t judge.”
Julia sighed. “I want you to be careful. Where will you be?”
Clandestine Lovers (Friendship Chronicles Book 3) Page 7
